A Loss so Early in Life
by Kella
Summary: Ron is finaly getting attention, but he hates it...I finally posted the last chapter!
1. Default Chapter

A Loss so Early in Life…  
  
A/N This is my first fic. I got the idea because Ron is my favorite character and I wanted to write a story about him and I thought how Harry always got all the attention. Please review!  
  
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to the goddess, JK Rowling except the idea.  
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Ron sat in the common room, gazing blankly into the fire. Why? He thought. Why did it have to happen to me?   
  
He had gotten the letter just that morning. There was only one table since it was the winter holidays. He trudged into the Great Hall alone that day. He was mad at Harry for two reasons. One was he was going out with the girl he, Ron, liked, Hermione. The second was that he wasn't here for Ron to yell at, as he was spending the winter holidays with Hermione. I can't be mad at Harry. It's not his fault.  
  
While helping himself to some eggs, the usual sound of swooping wings rushed towards his ears; the owls had arrived. Not expecting a letter, Ron continued heaping eggs on to his plate. To his surprise, a large tawny owl landed on his plate, a letter attached to its leg. Ron pulled it off, and the owl flew off to the owlry. He unrolled the parchment and tears welled up in his blue eyes as he read the glistening ink that formed into his sorrow. He ran out of the Great Hall, leaving the letter on the table.   
  
"What was that about?" Dumbledore asked. He picked up the letter, and when he read it, he understood.  
  
Mr. Ronald Weasley,  
I regret to inform you that a tragic occurrence has happened that concerns you. Last Tuesday the 26th of December, Mr. Arthur Weasley, Mrs. Molly Weasley, and Mr. George Weasley were murdered by Lord Voldemort at Mr. Percy Weasley's cauldron convention. I'm sorry for your loss.  
Sincerely,  
Martha Cobblestone  
Secretary to the Minister of Magic  
  
"Oh dear…"  
  
A/N I know it's really short. But the next chapters will be longer. Please review with praise or constructive criticism.   



	2. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Two

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Thanks for all of the reviews! It really helped me out!  
  
Disclaimer: Everything belongs to the goddess, JK Rowling! Except the idea...  
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Dumbledore quickly set the letter down and walked out of the Great Hall after Ron. A puzzled Proffesor McGonagall picked it up and read it.   
  
"Oh no...not another one," she sighed. Just then, a young fourth year witch read the letter she had received and copied Ron.  
  
At the same time...  
  
Ron ran and ran. He didn't know where to go. All he knew was he wanted to get away; to be alone. First he'd lost Hermione, now his parents and a brother. He was now out of the castle and running down the sweeping lawns toward the lake. He flung himself down and cried. He just cried.   
  
"Ron, I'm sorry..." Ron was startled. He looked up and squinted through his watery eyes. Dumbledore was looking down at him, his hand on Ron's shoulder.   
  
"Why, though?" Ron asked. "Why did it have to be them?" Dumbledore just stood there; for once, he couldn't think of anything to say. After a long pause, Ron said, "I think I'll go back to the Gryffindor Common Room now."  
  
Dumbledore smiled. "Ok."  
  
And that's how he had ended up gazing into the fire. He wanted to cry more. But it seemed that he had no more tears. The portrait opened and Dean Thomas and his best friend Seamus walked in laughing at a joke.   
  
"Hey, Ron!" said Seamus, finally controlling himself. "Why'd ya run off like that at breakfast this morning?"  
  
"It's none of your business!" Ron snapped back nastily. Dean and Seamus gave him dark looks and retreated to the other side of the room. Ron was happy.   
  
The next morning, Ron woke up still in the same armchair. He checked his watch and was startled to see that it was already a quarter past eleven. Even though he had never felt less hungry in his life, he slowly dragged his feet down to the Great Hall for some lunch. Everyone was already gathered.   
  
"Ahhh, Mr. Weasley!" Dumbledore remarked at his appearance. "Please do join us."  
  
Ron had his choice of two empty seats that were next to each other. On one side sat Seamus. Well that eliminated that one. The other one was next to a pretty fourth year witch Ron knew by site but not by name. She had shoulder length blonde hair and hazel-teal eyes. Ron had never seen such eyes. We all know that this was the witch that had run out of the Great Hall after Ron, but he of course did not. Ron sat in the seat next to the witch.  
  
"Can I have a word after breakfast?" the girl asked once he had sat down.   
  
"Um sure, I guess." Ron decided just to wait for the girl since he didn't have the slightest incline to eat. When she had finished, they exited the Great Hall together. In fact the exited the castle together. They walked around the school, until the reached the Quidditch Field. They sat down on the bleachers.  
  
"So it happened to you, too," the girl said.   
  
"What?" Ron replied.   
  
"My parents and my baby sister were murdered."  
  
"Oh I'm sorry." The girl just shook her head. Ron noticed that the eyes he had been so fascinated with that morning were red from old tears, and glistening from the new ones that tore at her eyelids.  
  
"I'm Ron," he said.  
  
"I'm Meredith."  
  
Ron let his feelings pour out of him. He felt content sharing things with her that he couldn't share with anyone else, not even Harry. He felt like he already knew her. 


	3. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Three

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Thanks for all of the reviews!  
  
Disclaimer: The only things I own is the character Meredith and the plot. Everything else blongs to JK Rowling.  
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Ron lied down on his bed. He had just got back from his talk with Meredith. Somehow, his body felt lighter as if a burden had been lifted off of him. But he still had the lump in his throat and the shaky feeling in his legs. Part of him wanted to talk to Harry; part of him didn't want to be near him. Well, he thought, I'll know in a couple of days.  
  
The next day at breakfast, Ron received another letter. It read:  
  
Dear Ron,  
We will be having a funeral for Mum, Dad, and George on January 28th. I'll come get you at Hogwarts. I've already sent a letter to Dumbledore. And Ron, try to hang in there.  
Love,  
Bill  
  
From down at the end of the table, Ginny glanced at Ron. Apparently, she had received the same letter. That night in the common room, they talked.  
  
"But how could he find them? I thought they were in hiding ever since last year when Harry saw You-Know-Who gain power," Ginny said in a worried voice.  
  
"They were going to. They just couldn't find the right secret-keeper. They told you that so that you wouldn't be worried," Ron replied.  
  
"Why them? Why, why, why? That's all I ever ask myself anymore," Ginny said scooting closer to her brother.  
  
"I know, I know," Ron said cradling her in his arms and rocking ever so slightly. "I know."  
  
A few days later...  
  
Ron and Ginny walked down to the Great Hall early. They both met up in the Common Room that morning at 4am because they couldn't sleep. When they reached the great oak doors, they opened them only to find the four house tables.   
  
"Oh yeah," Ginny said. "Everyone else is coming back today before classes tomorrow." Ron nodded in agreement.   
  
He was halfway through his bacon when the doors opened and the rest of the students piled in. Harry and Hermione were at the front, hand-in-hand. They walked over to Ron, carefully avoiding his eyes.  
  
"How was your vacation, Ron?" Hermione said.  
  
"A lot worse than yours probably was," he snapped back nastily. He got up and left the Hall, his anger conquering his lonliness.   
  
"That couldn't just be about us, could it?" Harry asked.   
  
"He's not telling us something..." Hermione replied.  
  
"He won't tell anyone," Dean said.  
  
"What do you mean?" Harry asked.  
  
"He did the same thing to us," said Seamus.  
  
"I just hope he's ok..."  
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Ron headed for Hagrid's house. He was the only one Ron felt he could talk to now, except for Meredith, but she had disappeared off to her family's funeral. When he reached the hut, Hagrid immeadatly opened the door. Ron went inside and sat down at the large wooden table.   
  
"Dumbledore told me..." Hagrid said to break the silence.  
  
"Great soon its going to be all over the school. I can't wait to hear what Malfoy going to say..."  
  
"Nah, on'y teachers know. And if that git gives you any trouble, you come ter me!" Ron smiled meekly.  
  
"Thanks Hagrid."   
  
They talked for about an hour about life and how things were going. Finally Ron decided to go back to the common room to finish some homework before classes the next day. Professor McGonagall had given them two books to read and Snape had assigned them a nasty essay about Confusing Potions. Ron decided to do that one last. Half way through his second Transfiguration book, Harry and Hermione walked in, looking worried.   
  
"Hagrid told us..." Hermione said. Harry walked over Ron, pulled him up, and embraced him like a brother.   
  
"I'm sorry Ron."  
  
They sat down and Ron told them everything; about the letter, about Dumbledore, about Meredith. When he reached her, he blushed deeply.   
  
"I see you've gotten over me," Hermione said slyly. If possible, Ron blushed even deeper.   
  
"Well, I like her, but it isn't the time to start a relationship, with murders in both of our families and all," Ron said. "Maybe next year," he said as an after thought.  
  
"When is the funeral?" Harry asked.  
  
"A week from tomorrow," Ron replied.  
  
  
A/N In the next chapter, a mystery will reveal itself! :) Please review! 


	4. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Four

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Thank you for all of the reviews! Feel free to give suggestions! :)  
  
Disclaimer: The only things I own are Meredith and the plot. Everything else belongs to JK Rowling.  
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It was the day the funeral. Ron had layed out his best black robes the night before. He had had to elongate them with a growing charm. He was horribly tired. It was one of those nights where you really tired, but you can't fall asleep. He checked his watch for the one hundreth time and was pleased to see that it was 6:30 am. He changed into his robes, being careful not to disturb the sleeping boys. He walked down to the Common Room, thinking it would be empty. But when he reached the bottom of the stairs, he was looking into the eyes of Neville Longbottom.  
  
"I heard," the boy said. "I'm sorry. I know how you feel."  
  
Ron wore a puzzeled look on his face, so Neville continued. "My parents were tortured by the Death Eaters when I was only one. There at St. Mungo's. They don't even recognize me." At this, Neville broke down and tears came out of his eyes. He brushed them away, though.   
  
"Will you be okay?" Ron asked.  
  
"Yeah, I'll be okay..."   
  
And the two boys left for breakfast. They sat down and helped themselves to eggs, bacon, and sausages. Ron was finishing his third cup of pumpkin juice when Harry and Hermione came into the Great Hall. Hermione had bought Ron three lilies for the funeral, and Harry offered moral support. Ron bid them good-bye and joined Ginny, who was leaving the Great Hall. Before they could leave, Dumbledore stood up and called for them to wait. He walked up to them and beckoned them out of the Hall.   
  
"Bill will be meeting you two in my office," he said. "And you don't have to make up the work that you miss." He smiled supportivly, only to be disappointed when no eyes met his. The rest of the journey was a silent one. When they reached the stone gargoyle, Dumbledore whispered the password to it (Fizzing Whizbee), and it jumped aside to let them pass. Bill was already waiting for them, several flowers in his hand, and his face looking down-cast. However, his face glowed ever so slightly at the sight of his brother and sister.  
  
"Hi, Ron, Ginny!" he said.   
  
"They are ready to go," said Dumbledore.  
  
"Good," Bill replied. He pulled out a small sack filled with floo powder. He then took a pinch of it and threw it into the roaring fire that burned in the fireplace. It instantly turned a bright, emerald green.   
  
"We're going to Saint Diana's Cemetary," Bill said. "Ron you go first."  
  
Ron stepped into the green fire and experianced the familiar feeling of warm breath. Slowly and clearly, he said, "Saint Diana's Cemetary!" And he was transported through what looked like blue clouds to a beautiful cemetary.  
  
He had landed in a fireplace in a small, stone house. He stepped outside into the warm sunlight. It was the exact opposite of how he felt inside, cloudy and gray.   
  
"It's nice. Mum would have liked it." Ginny had just appeared behind Ron.  
  
"We should wait for Bill." Ginny agreed.   
  
Suddenly she cried out, "Look! There's Fred and Charlie!" And indeed, the two brothers were standing in front of three coffins. Forgetting completely about Bill, the two siblings walked over to them.   
  
"Oh Charlie!" Ginny cried, and she flung herself towards him, sobbing.   
  
"Ginny!"  
  
They hugged each other tightly, as if afraid that they would lose each other too. Fred pulled Ron aside.  
  
"Ron, Charlie reckons that this was an inside job."  
  
"You mean someone close works for You-Know-You?"  
  
"Yes, just be careful..."  
  
Bill finally arrived along with Percy and the pastor. Finally the funeral could begin. But Ron couldn't handle it. He could stand to see their cold, gray faces, their expressionless eyes. He walked away briskly.  
  
"Ron! Come back here!"  
  
"Leave him, Percy..."  
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After the ceremony, everyone but Ron went into the stone house for some tea. He had been watching the funeral from a distance. When he was perfectly sure that the rest of them weren't looking and the coffins were closed, he carefully creeped across the lawns to his dead family. He kissed each of the lilies and placed one on each coffin. Just then something strange happened. He felt all of his sadness drain away into the earth below him. A new feeling erupted inside of him. He knew this feeling. It was the feeling of revenge.  
  
"I'll find out who the traitor is!" he pledged to himself. "If it's the last thing I do!"  
  
A/N Ha ha! A cliffhanger! Please review! I'll have the next chapter up as soon as I can. 


	5. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Five

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N I won't be able to post the next chapter for a while because I'm going to Prague with my muggle friends! :) Also, I always imagined Fawkes as a girl...  
  
Disclaimer: I own Meredith and the plot. Everything else belongs to the goddess JK Rowling!  
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Ron decided to go back inside and drink some tea. It was cold and windy, and his teeth were beginning to chatter. But as he did, he saw two figures enter the graveyard and walk over to his family's graves. He followed them closely.  
  
"Now that that's over with, we can go to him and start our next mission," said a male voice that sounded very familiar but different.  
  
"Yes, but what if the rest of the family finds out?" said a female voice.  
  
"We'll kill them too."  
  
He finally entered the house only to find it empty. There was a note attatched to the sack of floo powder.  
  
Dear Ron,  
We couldn't find you so we decided to leave. We left you some floo powder to get back to Hogwarts. Hope you're ok.  
Love,  
Bill.  
  
"Great, no tea," Ron mumbled. He took the sack and threw a pinch of powder into the fire. Soon he was back in Dumbledore's office, but only Fawkes was there, her head under her wing. She was asleep. Ron decided to poke around. Nothing interesting was found in the pictures of past headmasters. But when he reached Dumbledore's desk, he found something VERY interesting. It was a file on his parents' best friends, the Snyders.   
  
The Snyders  
  
Children: none  
Home: Ottery-St. Catchpole  
Criminal record: Mr. Snyder on trial for hiding Bartiminus Crouch Jr.   
Observations:very interested in the Weasleys  
  
Ron gasped. Could the Snyders have been the ones at the graveyard? You know our Ron, always jumping to conclusions. In a minute he was convinced it was them. He ran off to tell Meredith.  
  
After he was finished with his story, Meredith added something she found suspicious.  
  
"I was at the graveyard. It was the middle of the ceremony. I looked away and there were these two hooded figures in the bushes. They ducked away when they say me looking."  
  
"I bet they were the same people that were at my family's ceremony."  
  
"We have to do something."  
  
  
A/N Sorry but you'll have to wait for the next chapter. I'm going to Prague. Please review!  



	6. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Six

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Sorry about the delay but I got back from Prague and my computer broke down! But it's up again! :) Enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: JK Rowling has created all of this and I am just playing around with it. :)  
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It took them weeks to come up wdith a plan. They went over countless ideas, just to go back to the drawing board. Finally, they found one that they liked. They were going to try and lure the two DeathEaters to them with some bait. Very ambitious these two were.  
  
"All we need now is some bait..." Meredith said.  
  
Ron thought for a moment. He searched his brain for an option. Suddenly, it came to him. They would use the perfect DeathEater's son, Draco Malfoy.   
  
"That's a splendid idea!" Meredith exclaimed after he had told her. "The DeathEaters are bound to know him!"  
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The next day, Ron and Meredith left breakfast early so that they could catch Draco on his way out. Each time the doors opened, they would jump, and once Meredith accidentally stunned a second year. Finally, they saw a flash of silver blond hair.  
  
"STUPIFY!" cried Meredith. They went to get Draco, when they found three stunned bodies.  
  
"Looks like we picked up some excess baggage," Ron said, gently prodding Goyle with his foot.   
  
They easily dragged away Malfoy, seeing as he was so thin. But it took the both of them to move only one of Draco's goonies. Finally they shoved them in a broom closet.  
  
Later that day, Meredith and Ron were trying to catch up on their Charms assignment. They had been passing notes and they hadn't been listening. Their assignment was, believe it or not, different ways to awaken someone who has been stunned.  
  
"Let's bring out Malfoy now," Meredith said. Se had already mastered the charms a while ago.  
  
"Okay, you do that. I just gotta get this last one down," Ron replied.  
  
While Meredith started to drag Malfoy out, Ron roduced a percact charm, which, unfortunatly, hit Draco in the chest. He became concious right away. Ron felt sparks hit him, and afterwards he fainted from the pain.  
  
He woke up to a blinding white light.  
  
  
A/N Is he dead???? You'll just have to wait and see...*mischevious grin*. 


	7. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Seven

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Sorry it took so long to get this one up, my computer was down. Anyway, r/r and enjoy!  
  
Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns most of this stuff so don't sue me.  
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Ron was almost blinded. It took him several seconds to adjust to the light.  
  
Am I dead?  
  
Then he realized where he was. He wasn't DEAD. He was in the ordinary Hogwarts hospital wing, in an ordinary bed, wearing an ordinary hospital gown. He turned his head slightly, and found that Albus Dumbledore was looking down at him.  
  
"Finally, Mr. Weasley, you've woken up."  
  
"How long have I been asleep?"  
  
"A few days. I was afraid you wouldn't wake up."  
  
"Where are the Snyders? Let me at them!"  
  
"The Snyders didn't kill your family, Ron," Dumbledore said calmly.  
  
"Who was it? I'll rip their hearts out..." Dumbledore suddenly looked angry. It hit Ron that he had never seen Dumbledore get this wa before.  
  
"Don't you understand? Revenge is a curse. You go out and you hur someone, maybe even kill them. But what if the feeling doesn't go away? Yu go out and find another face. But it still doesn't go away!"   
  
At this point, Dumbledore sighed and lowered his voice a little. "It never stops. That's how Voldemort started, he killed his father. He just got so wrapped up in killing, he couldn't stop. Don't let that happen to you!"  
  
Dumbledore sighed again, heavily this time. He seemed exhausted suddenly.  
  
"Where's Meredith?" Ron asked, suddenly remembering his partner. Dumbledore's face, if possible, went even more serious.  
  
"Where is she?" asked Ron, becoming more and more concerned.  
  
"Meredith," Dumbledore said, looking down at his feet, "is dead."   
  
Ron almost choked. "H-how?" he managed to get out. His eyes were blurry from all the tears. He hadn't felt this mixture of sadness and pure shock since he found out that three members of his family had died.   
  
"When you went unconcious, the first thing she did was bring you here. Then she just dissappeared. We only know what happened from the information Draco Malfoy has given us. It seems there was a plan, of which I'm sure you know. She thought she could carry out the plan herself. The first part of her plan went successfully. She managed to lure the DeathEaters to her, but they got the best of her."  
  
"I want to see them," Ron said.  
  
"Are you sure? You don't know who it is. I don't want you to faint or anything again."  
  
"No, I want to see them."  
  
"Very well..." Dumbledore led him out of the hospital wing, much to Madam Pomfrey'd dislike. They wove their ways through the halls until they reached the gargoyle that garded Dumbledore's office. He gave it the password (Sugar Quill!) and they went inside.   
  
"They're in there," Dumbledore said, indicating a door to his left. Ron walked in. When he saw who it was, his breath caught in his chest. Two DeathEaters sat in chained chairs. But they weren't the Snyders. They weren't even the Malfoys.  
  
  
A/N Okay so I stole a little thing from Book 1. Anyway r/r! Please!  
  



	8. A Loss so Early in Life-Part Eight

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N Sorry about the delay, my computer keeps going down! Up, down, up, down, up down! Ok now I dizzy! Ooooohhhhhhh...  
  
Disclaimer: JK Rowling is the genius that created most of these characters. I'm just playing with them. Don't sue me...you wouldn't get much.  
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It was Percy and Penelope. Ron couldn't breathe. He was going to faint. But then Percy looked up at him and the two, erm, brothers' (if you can call them that) eyes met.  
  
"Hello Ron," Percy said as if nothing had happened and Ron was just coming down to breakfast.  
  
"How can you even look at me?" Ron asked disgusted.  
  
"Well it's quite easy actually," Percy replied. "I just focus my eyes on you, then the light reflected off of you hits my eye and refracts. It then produces a picture on the back of my eye, which is carried to brain by the optic nerve to be..."  
  
"You know what I mean, smart ass!"  
  
"Language!" Ron spit at Percy's feet.  
  
"Is that better for you?"  
  
Percy looked down at his feet disgustedly, but he seemed to try and over-look it.  
  
"There's only one thing that keeps me from walking away right now and leaving you to the dementers," Ron said.  
  
"Oh, and what would that be?" Percy asked, slightly amused.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why. Now there's a question," Percy said. "Well, I suppose it all started when Mr. Crouch died. I thought that I would have been overcome with grief, he was my idle after all. But I wasn't. In fact, I was happy. When he died, I got promoted to Head of Magical Cooperation. And on top of that, everyone gave me attention. You didn't think I didn't hate being compared to Bill and Charlie, did you? It was wonderful. They were all, 'Oh Percy! You must be devestated! Can I get you anything? Anything at all?' That's when I met him. Or rather, his servant, by the name of Pettigrew. I believe you know him. Of course, he knew all about me, my wit, my ambition, being my old pet. I was just the person he was looking for. He introduced him to my soon to be master, who explained the situation to me. Barty Crouch Jr., I came to know, was actually alive, and posing as an overworked Auror now taking up the postition of Defense Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts. He needed to work a few 'bugs' out of his master plan to finally cpture and transport Harry Potter to Voldemort. I was to help him. And I did. After that, my master regained his power, but unfortunatly Potter got away. But now my master was strong again! After that, we did little, as it was his plan to lie low for a while and then attack when he had his full army. I tortured some, killed a few. But I wasn't concidered a true Death Eater until recently. You see, you had to go through a, what's the word, an initiation. One had to kill some one dear to them to be accepted. So that's what I did. Of course I asked dear Penelope here to help me, and she accepted." He guestered at the woman next to him, who was snoozing at the moment.  
  
"And the file on the Snyders?" Ron asked.  
  
"A 'red herring' to fool you."  
  
Ron felt like there was nothing else to say. He left the room, not looking back, but feeling Percy's eyes follow him all the way out.  
  
  
A/N What did you think? The next chapter will be the last! Please r/r! 


	9. A Loss so Early in LIfe-Part Nine

A Loss so Early in Life  
  
A/N This is the last chapter in my story. I'll miss writing it. But WitchGirl and I are writing another story. Check it out! It's called When There's Nothing Else to Cling to.  
  
Disclaimer: Nothing is mine except for Meredith.  
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A week later, someone would have thought that Hogwarts had never changed. Spring had arrived, and exams were coming up. Everyone was studying. Ron had almost gotton over the death of his parents and brother. He still wasn't keen to talking about it. But what he was really depressed about was the death of Meredith. He reclaimed his armchair by the fire every night. Harry and Hermione were beginning to get worried.  
  
"Who would have believed Percy would have been the one?" Hermione asked, remembering the times when she had looked up to Percy.  
  
"Dunno, but definitly not Ron..." replied Harry.   
  
"Meredith's death really hit him hard."  
  
"I know..."  
  
"I wish there was something we could do for him."   
  
Just then, two people scrambled through the portrait hole. It was Lavender and Parvati, whispering about something frantically.  
  
"Have you heard?" Parvai asked.  
  
"No."  
  
"There's a ball tomorrow night!"  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Um...to honor someone, Melinda or something."  
  
"MEREDITH?" Ron shouted, finally coming out of his trance.  
  
"Yeah! That was it!" Lavender said. "C'mon, Parvati! I gotta find Seamus!"  
  
That night, just as Harry fell asleep, he heard muffled sobs coming from the bed near him.  
  
Gee, I never thought I'd hear him cry...Hold on, buddy...  
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The next morning, Ron came to breakfast for the first time in a couple of days. Everyone seemed sympathetic to him, even Professor Snape! He'd always wanted attention, but now he just wanted to be alone. Dumbledore had given everyone the day off as a holiday. This gave the girls plenty of time to talke about clothes, dates, etc., which made Ron even more aggravated. He decided to go see Hagrid. As he trudged down the sloping lawns, he caught a glimse of a few couples sitting by the lake, or walking up to the castle. It seemed that when you are depressed about something, you are always reminded of it afterwards. Finally he reached the small hut on the edge of the forest.  
  
"Hi!" Hagrid exclaimed when he opened the door. His face fell when he was greeted with a gloomy face. "What's wrong?"   
  
"I dunno...just thinking I guess."  
  
"'Bout Meredith..." Ron's eyes filled with tears again, and he tried to hide them from Hagrid. But Hagrid saw them.  
  
"'S'okay to cry. I cried a lot when me dad died. I'll tell ya one thing, though. Don't do much, cryin'."  
  
"Why'd this happen to me, Hagrid?"  
  
"Dunno, but they say the Lord works in mysterious ways. Never met Him myself, but he's out there."  
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That night, Harry and Hermione got ready for the ball. Hermione wore her periwinkle-blue robes again; Harry, his green ones. On their way down to the Great Hall, they met Ron in the common room.   
  
"'Bye Ron," Hermione said.  
  
"'Bye. Have a good time," he replied.   
  
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Harry asked for the tenth time that night.  
  
"Yeah," Ron replied. His eyes were still red, but he hadn't cried since he had talked to Hagrid. He waved good-bye as his friends disappeared through the portrait hole. He was the only one in the common room, and he was happy. He didn't know why, but he was. Then he realized why he was happy.   
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Harry and Hermione were dancing in the Great Hall. Strangely, "I am your Angel", a muggle song by Celine Dion, came on. Harry smiled slightly as he thought of Meredith. She would have liked this song...  
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"Hello Ron..." said the ghostly girl in front of him.  
  
"Meredith?" The ghost just smiled and nodded her head.  
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Harry and Hermione danced slowly, very close together. Nothing could ruin this moment. Nothing.  
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In the common room, Ron and the ghost Meredith danced as well. Ron felt no cold at the touch of her, only a deep warmth. This is where I need to be...  
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And so the two couples held each other closely. Love was in the air that night at Hogwarts. And there it will stay. Always and forever.  
  
  
A/N *Sniff* I made myself cry writing this. Meredith and Ron would make such a cute couple (lol Meredith if you are reading this!)! So what did you think? R/R SVP (Sil vous plait [please in french]) BTW check out WitchGirl's and my new fic! It's called When There's Nothing Else to Cling to. 


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